The Warner sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1885-1???, 1887-01-21

Then 1 mace eVeryUnlnS uurk again,
and tried to go to sleep. could not
have sunk into Inconsistencies for
more than FIVE minutes when | saw In
a dream, and as distinctly as reality
itself, the whole incident Of that even
ing. / woke up in terror, and after
making q light sat up in bed without
daring to try to go to sleep again.
Sleep, Notwithstanding, twice seized
uponfor a few moments, in spite ofmy,
self. Twice / saw the same thing. !
thought | had actually gone mad!
When daylight appeared felt com.
pletely cured, and | took q peaceful
sleep until midday.
1t had passed, entirely passed, lhad
had a fever, O. nightmare, or some
thing of the sort. Anyhow | had been
sick. Nevertheless I thought myself
very much OF a fool.
That day l vas quite jolly. l dined
at the carbaret, went to the theatre,
and then started for home. But 10!
as l drew near my house, u strange
sense of uneasiness took possession OF
me. l was afraid Of seeing him again
him! Not afraid of him precisely
not afraid of his presence, in which |
did not believe; but afraid of another
optical trouble, afraid of the halluci-
nation, afraid OF the fear which would
come upon me.
For more than an hour | kept walk
ing up and down the sidewalk. Then
at last / decided this was absolutefol-
ly, and I went in. l painted so much
that l could scarcely climb the stairs.
| stood for fully ten minutes more on
the landing, in front OF my room.
Then, suddenly, | felt 3 rush of cour-
age, a bracing up of will. / plunged
my key in the keyhole; l rushed for
ward with a lighted candle in my
hand; l kicked in the unfastened door
OF the room, and | threw one terrified
glance at the fireplace. l saw moth
ing. All!
What a relief What joyl What a
deliverancel l went to and fro with q
staggering air. But still I did not
feel perfectly confident. 1 would turn
round by fits and starts to look be-
hind me; the darkness in the corners
of the room frightened me.
/ slept badly, being necessarily
startled out of my rest by imaginary
noises. But l never saw him. No.
That was all over.
Ever since that day I have been
afraid to be alone at night. / can feel
it there, close to me-tne vision! 1t
did not make it's appearance again
oh, mol. And what matter, anyhow,
since l don't believe in it, since know
that it is aothing?
Still it annoyed me, because l keep
all the time thinking about it. One
arm was hanging down on the right
side; his head dropped a little to the
left, like that of a man asleep. Come,
that's enough of it, nom de Dieu! l
don't want to think about it any more!
And still, what is this feeling Of be-
ing haunted? Why does it persist in
this way? His feet were close to the
fire..
He haunts me; it is madness, but it
is sol Who is he? l know perfectly
we'll that he does not exist-that it
is nothing whatever! He only exists
in my apprehension, In my fear, in
my anguish! There that's enough!
Yes. but it's no use for me to reason
with myself about it-no use to try
to brace up against it; | can't remain
alone at home any more, because he
is therel / know / won't see him any
more; he won't show himself again
that's past. But he is there all the
same in my thought. Because he re-
mains invisibleit does not follow that
he is not there! Heis behind the doors,
and in the armoir and under the bed
lin all the dark corners, in all the
shadows. If / stir the door upon it's
hinges, if l open my armoir, if / lower
my light to look under the bed,
il, / throw the light upon the corners,
upon the shadows, ne is not there, but
then / feel him behind me! / turn
roun2-certain all the while that / am
not going to see him, that / will not
not ever see him again. He Is behind
me still, for all that.
It is stupid, but it is atorciousl
What would you have me do? / can
do nothing.
But if there were two of us together
at home, then, / feel--yes, / am per.
fectly sure-that he would not be there
any more. For he is there because !
am alone-and for no other reason
than because / am alone.-Guy de
| Observation-Disclosures for Times.
Democrat.